During a recent podcast interview I was asked what I thought were the top five “systems or tools” that a Sales Manager needs to be successful. After thinking about all the possibilities and responsibilities that any sales leader faces I answered the question with the list below. They are not listed in any order of ... Read Post

“To know oneself is to study oneself in action with another person” – Bruce Lee I had a very interesting conversation the other day with a former colleague of mine, Bruce Wedderburn (who will be featured in an upcoming expert interview), and the concept of self responsibility in sales came up. And as I reflected ... Read Post

In pursuing complex enterprise accounts, a significant challenge that sales teams face is long, drawn out sales cycles. Working a major enterprise opportunity can take months or even years–and even then it may or may not be won. As those precious hours, days, weeks and months go by, all the negative factors increase: doubts, risks, ... Read Post

Depending on which sales course you took, you as a salesperson were probably taught to identify and set meetings with buying influences–known as economic buyers, technical buyers or recommenders. While it’s important to engage a prospect company’s buyers, be sure to prepare for one more entity: your buyer’s reptilian brain. This particular buying influence isn’t ... Read Post

Last week I was looking to buy a new computer, an additional one I could travel with. I called a few companies to ask a few questions and get a few estimates. Not one who knows much about computers, I was relying on some advice and a little research I had done. When I narrowed ... Read Post

This week, I think the universe has been “telling” me to write this blog post. It must be a sign when I can look back at this week and recall 1 face-to-face meeting, 2 phone calls, and 9 (yes nine) emails–every one of them aimed at directly getting me to buy or getting me to ... Read Post

When I open my Facebook my feed is filled with posts about the top ways to gain more business through webinars, email, and Facebook ads (among other pay per click advertising). The struggle is the average e-commerce only site converts 3% of the traffic that comes in, which means we spend a lot of time ... Read Post

Top Line Tips TOP Line Accounts™ will transform your business – it’s that simple. Top Line Accounts are your biggest and best prospects and/or customers. They are typically valued at a minimum of 5x your average contract size. They are or will become your banner accounts. You will reference them frequently to attract more customers ... Read Post